bee there a scooter rider

Well I passed my rider test and am now a legal rider...no longer do I have to wear the fluro learners jacket and be escorted by somebody conversing about road rules via a two way headset. Now I can zoom around where and when I want. Most days as I mention a quick trip around the block, my 8 year old son quickly grabs his helmet and bolts out the door to ride with me. Today's ride was nothing out of the norm apart from one route change that saw us doing 70ks instead of our usual 40 or 50. We were scooting along quite happily when I discovered the double impact of being struck full force in the neck by an angry bee...first is the fright it gives you as you are not 100% sure what it was that actually hit you...and of course they refuse to gracefully just fly away to a wonderous life of making honey and pollenating flowers...no they have to crawl on your neck and as you try and brush them away they opt to tear their guts out of their arses by stinging you in the neck with their hyperdermic bum spears! Lucky for me I am only allergic to shellfish and if I ever see those buggers flying around...I will hand my license over.

Scooter Girl

Since moving back to Western Australia I have grown and changed...I have decided that I can't live my life if I allow negative people to have any impact on my life. I am a good person and I deserve the respect I have always shown others. Anyhoo since my way of living has changed I have seen a brighter world...and so...I bought a scooter. I am having weekly lessons and I love it! I love zipping around, I love the feeling of not having to share this one thing with anybody. I smile when I ride because I can completely and utterly forget the negative as I ride into the positive future that I have earned.

Stuff

ok I have some more catching up to do here...so let me see if I can remember it all...I seem to have finally recovered from pnenumonia, my teen had a melt down with the school he was attending when we first moved home...he is settled in the right school now. I finished the complete set of Zodiac sketches, I bought a scooter and am currently having weekly lessons. I was treated like a star at a craft show in August...I was doing demos...I love shows and demos! The week after the show I was flown to Melbourne to demo at a retreat, and I taught a workshop at A Scrappe Angels Heaven with my lovely friend Cindy Porter. On my return I got into teaching hard and fast through my new little group here in Western Australia..."Grubby Little Artists". I have also be snaggled by Smudge & Sparkle in Ellenbrook as their resident mixed media teacher. Soooooo there ya go...in a nutshell I have been pretty busy but always loving it.

Hi there!!! Have you missed me? I thought I had better log in and let you all know what I have been up to...in June I developed pneumonia and am still recovering, we are now living back in my beautiful home state of Western Australia. This weekend I am working at the craft and wood show and next weekend I am working in Melbourne...after that? Who knows?

Winners of ATC background giveaway

All names were written on pieces of paper and put into a container for drawing by my lovely assistant...so there was no tampering or favortism...I wish I could send a pack to everybody but alas I only have five to give away this time. Yes I will definately have more give aways in the future, so keep your eyes open for them.

The winners are:

1. TEXTILE & STITCH
2. DOREEN G
3. LUCY M
4. SHAZZ
5. LYNNE

• WINNERS PLEASE BE SURE TO CONTACT ME ASAP atclindab@yahoo.com.au

• PLEASE NOTE THAT IF YOU DO NOT CONTACT ME WITH YOUR POSTAL DETAILS BY MONDAY, I WILL REDRAW

ATC mixed media backgrounds...GIVE AWAY!!!

five packs to give away...



real texture...these are not prints




ten background ATCs per pack



yes I am having a give away...just because I feel like it!

I have been playing with backgrounds and uploading to YouTube all the fun I am having.

Now I have so much beautiful paper that I created...what should I do? Have a give away!

How can you win one of the five packs?

Simple...leave a comment here, telling me what you would do if you won one of the packs.

Feel free to share...I will draw five random winners on the first of March

good luck!

Colour appreciation...orange

I have learned to really appreciate colour by looking at where and how it fits in to my life...the collage you see here is just a small sample of the orange things in my life...

• there are orange bricks in the yard, they don't match the house colour at all, so I refer to them as mystery bricks...bricks represent foundation and stability, so they are a good omen!
• My furbaby "Tilly" is my favorite orange thing!
•  I love rust.
• Tilly's favorite toy is a bright orange cat that crickles when she bites it
• we have orange tidy bags full of old clothes to be donated to charity before we move
• I have so many plastic tubs full of stuff that won't fit in this house...most have orange labels
• the tap fittings are orange
• the balm tree seeds/fruit is orange
• I love butter chicken and it's orange colour is appetising
• I am a Cottee's kid, we drank so much orange cordial as kids
• I love copper wire
• orange bunny from JD's first Easter will go to a new home before we move back to Perth in June
• JD grows cacti and the orange one is so cool and interesting

there are so many orange things around...do you have a lot of orange in your life?

Moonshadow Inks

use a pipette to load an Aquawash pen...



the flow is amazing!!!




dries quickly...




I used my Moonshadow Inks in my Aquawash pen to ink the edges of the Valentine tag I made



Mr Stitchy makes butterflies



I don't try for perfection when I sew...to me it is much more fun if you just let Mr Stitchy have his own way with the fabric




painting doesn't need to be perfect either...art should be enjoyable




don't be afraid to try a vast mix or mediums on your project...

JD was my model for this giant flutterby..,



even Miss Tilly tried it on...





smaller versions...what will become of them?



Warning!!! walking the diva dog can lead to unexpected bouts of furniture revival

poor little abondoned table...



dirt, dust and loose paint removed...




primed and read for paint...




first colour is a rich copper spray...




can you believe this was just a little aluminium caste table?!




Teal roughly painted and wiped back to give the illusion of a verdigris over copper...



We took Tilly for her first walk last week...between the crappy weather, my lack of time or enthusiasm, and the fact that she just had the "bitch snip"...anyhoo, on the way back from the local park I spotted a little grungey table tossed in an old wheelbarrow on the verge, we snaggled it and headed home.

I love the look of verdigris over copper, and so off to the local hardware store I went. I have to say I was met with some odd looks from the staff when I explained what I wanted to do...can you believe that neither of the two young blokes working in the paint section had any idea what verdigris was...or patina!...I had to educate them. I had to make sure they sold me primer and paint that would stick to metal and be long wearing. I have no idea how these guys had jobs.

Any way, I got what I needed and did what I wanted, and I am thrilled with how it turned out.

Words Or Whatever...giving their heart to you...

It was a nice surprise to receive a little flourish chipboard heart in the mail, it made me smile, and I knew what to do with it straight away...if you like what I created I have some good news for you...WOW are giving these devine little hearts away!!! Click HERE for full details.

wor

Sharing my art with you...

Gemini



Aquarius




Aries




Leo




Queen of the Butterflies
(SOLD)


I took a break from texture and got out my Dewent Inktense pencils and watercolour pad...and got to playing. I love the depth of colour I get from the pencils, but when you bring in another brilliant product like Lindy's Stamp Gang's Starburst Stains you get an even more amazing effect...and the shimmer!!! Wow I love love love the shimmer. Anyhoo my title mentions sharing...weeeeell I am super excited to let you know that some of my sketches are being turned into craft stamps...how friggin cool is that?! Look out March 7th for the official release from Queen Kat Designs